Time Lady's Fairytale Theater - Meowth and Rattata
by Time Lady
Summary: Time Lady's Fairytale Theater - Meowth and Rattata in Partnership - based on the fairy tale "Cat and Mouse in Partnership" - an innocent Rattata and a conniving Meowth try living together - with what result?


Time Lady's Fairytale Theater - Meowth and Rattata in Partnership  
  
By Time Lady  
  
Based on the fairy tale "Cat and Mouse in Partnership" from the Yellow Fairy Book compiled by Andrew Lang  
  
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Disclaimer: I do not own the characters contained within.  
  
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Once upon a time, in the land known as Kanto, there lived a Meowth who met a Rattata. He spoke to it gently and over time they became great friends. The Meowth suggested they find a home together and share in the housekeeping responsibilities. They found a nice little home in the forest near Viridian City.  
  
After a month or so, they began thinking about the upcoming winter. "Let's put our cash together and buy a jumbo sized box of Poke-chow in case of emergencies," suggested the Meowth. "I mean, if you went out, you might get caught in a trap, or captured by a Pokeball or something."  
  
"You're right," squeaked the Rattata, who was very paranoid of being out in the open alone. "But where will we keep our emergency food? If we keep it here, we might eat it before it's time."  
  
After a lot of debate, the Meowth hit upon a solution. "Why don't we keep it at the Pokemon Center? If Nurse Joy and the Chanseys know it's only for us, they won't let any others take it. We can put some tape on top so no one will open it."  
  
Together they took the box of Poke-chow to the Pokemon Center. Nurse Joy agreed to let them store it there. It was placed on a high shelf in one of the storerooms and clearly labeled so no one would touch it.  
  
One day, the Meowth tired of the usual food he and the Rattata shared. "You know," he thought to himself, "that whole box of Poke-chow is just sitting on the shelf. . ." He concocted a plan and went to the Rattata. "Dearest Rattata," he said, putting on his most winsome smile. "My cousin just had a little Meowth kitten at the Pokemon Center. She's asked me of all Meowths to come and be the godfather. I heard he is the most adorable little thing with a very shiny golden charm on his head. Would'ja mind if I went to the celebration?"  
  
"Of course not," she replied, very naïve of the ways of the world. "How could one not go to see one's newest cousin? If they serve anything good, please think of me and bring back a piece."  
  
Once out of the house the Meowth made all haste to the Pokemon Center. The Chansey on duty believed his explanation of needing to check on their winter food stores and let him into the store room. Meowth climbed to the top shelf, carefully lifted the sealing tape, and ate the top pieces out of the box. With his hunger for the Poke-chow satiated he resealed the box and left. He took a slow walk home, enjoying the sun and picking a few flowers along the way. The sun had set by the time he reached his home.  
  
"Welcome home," said the Rattata, giving the Meowth a quick hug. "I hope you enjoyed yourself."  
  
"Very much. There wasn't any food left over, but I brung you some flowers."  
  
"How sweet. And is your godchild adorable?"  
  
"Cute as a button."  
  
"What did they name him?"  
  
"Topoff."  
  
"What a queer name. . ."  
  
"Hey, it ain't any worse than your godchild Breadthief," snapped the Meowth irritably.  
  
For a few days all was quiet. Then Meowth once again began to hunger for the Poke-chow. "Hey Rattata, sweetie," he said in his most sugary tone. "I just heard my sister had a little Meowth kit. They said it was just the fluffiest little thing. And my sister won't be happy unless her favorite brother is the kitten's godfather. You wouldn't mind staying home alone today, would you?"  
  
"Of course not," said the Rattata.  
  
Again the Meowth made his way to the Pokemon Center. The Chansey on duty let him into the storeroom. This time the greedy Meowth polished off half of the box before resealing it. His stomach full, he took a long, leisurely walk back to the home he shared with the Rattata.  
  
"How is your newest godchild?" asked the Rattata when Meowth opened the door. "Is he as fluffy as you said?"  
  
"A regular powder puff," returned Meowth.  
  
"How adorable. What did they name him?"  
  
"Halfgone."  
  
"Halfgone? Is that a family name?"  
  
"Um, yeah. On my brother-in-law's side." The Meowth then went about his business.  
  
Days later, Meowth found himself hungering for the taste of the Poke-chow. "I just can't leave that last bit up on the shelf. It's calling me." He found the Rattata at work cleaning their home. "Ain't it great how good things happen in threes?" he said to the Rattata. "A Pidgey just brought me a message from my brother. His mate just had a kitten. . . and it sparkles! A Meowth kit born with sparkling fur happens maybe one in every ten-thousand."  
  
"Then surely you must go see it," agreed the Rattata. "Will you stand as godfather again?"  
  
"You better believe it." Meowth gave her a toothy grin.  
  
"Will this one have as. . . unique a name as the others? I mean, names such as Topoff and Halfgone?"  
  
"Kid, you don't get out much. They got weirder names than that floating around the humans. Anyhow, I'm outta here. See ya later."  
  
The Meowth ran to the Pokemon Center as fast as he could. Once inside the storeroom he climbed to the top shelf and gobbled down the last of the Poke- chow. Then he took his sweet time returning to the home.  
  
Meanwhile the Rattata occupied herself by giving the home a thorough cleaning from top to bottom. Occasionally the strangeness of Meowth's godchildren's names haunted her mind, but it was never for long. The sun had set by the time Meowth returned. He appeared very satisfied.  
  
"Was there a feast for this child?" she asked.  
  
"Oh, and what a feast there was." Meowth yawned, showing all his teeth.  
  
"And what did they name this child."  
  
"You ain't gonna like this one any better. They called him Allgone."  
  
The Rattata blinked in surprise. "Oh, I see. And is this one of those unique names you mentioned."  
  
"The parents wanted something trendy."  
  
Things settled down after this. No strange messages arrived for Meowth asking him to be a godparent. He and the Rattata went about their lives, caring for their little home. Summer became autumn; autumn became winter. Snow fell, blanketing the ground and making food difficult to find.  
  
"My dear Meowth," said the Rattata. "Now is the kind of time we had stored our food away for. Let us go fetch the box of Poke-chow we left at the Pokemon Center."  
  
"Yeah, sure."  
  
Together they made their way through the snow to the Pokemon Center. The Chansey in attendance opened the door to the storage room and let them inside. They climbed up to the top shelf, where they had previously hid the sealed box.  
  
The Rattata opened up the tape. . . and found the box completely empty. She stared at her "friend" Meowth. Suddenly it all dawned on her. "How. . . how could you? When you came to the Pokemon Center for your so-called 'god-children.' First you ate off the first few pieces and called the child 'Topoff.'" Her voice became increasingly agitated. "Then you polished off half of the box and named the non-existent child 'Halfgone.' And then, when you had the audacity to finish off the rest of the food, you decided to name the child. . ."  
  
"Shaddup," snarled Meowth. "One more word outta you and you're lunch."  
  
However the poor Rattata was already in the process of saying the word "Allgone." It was barely out of her mouth when the Meowth pounced and made a quick meal out of her.  
  
"Can't say I didn't warn ya," he said. Patting his full stomach, he slipped out of the Pokemon Center, never to be seen in the Viridian area again.  
  
- The End -  
  
Author's notes: I thought it was time I did a fairy tale from another series. This one seemed just perfect. Why didn't I use Pikachu? I don't think Pikachu would be as gullible to fall for Meowth's stunt.  
  
Because I'm diversifying my fairy tales, I'm going to be changing from "Digimon Fairy Tale Theater" to "Time Lady's Fairytale Theater." 


End file.
